Ethnographic & Observational Research

Deep research into consumer behavior is more than just focus groups.  Observational research is an important -- and under utilized -- tool in better understanding core consumer needs.

Diane Fraley conducted ethnographic studies during her PhD. work on the nonverbal communication of poker players, and on the acquisition of language in mother-infant interactions.  These academic projects developed strong ethnographic research practices that are integrated with her current research designs.  She took these methods into the corporate world in her early work with Warner Cable, Kenner Toys, and Burke Marketing Research. 

D.S. Fraley combines Diane's observational design expertise with Gregg’s experience in media production. Together they capture consumers in their environment and deliver media-based reports that bring findings to life.  

Early in the inception of D.S. Fraley Associates, Diane conducted a seminal study on behavior patterns in kitchens and in bathrooms, using her newly designed video observational research techniques.  The findings of this study had a lasting impact on the product development direction of one of the largest consumer product companies in the world.     

International observational work includes studies on home life in Japan and Brazil.  The goal of this study was to understand how people live in order to identify unmet needs, and then to align existing product brands with those needs.  In the U.K. a study was done on the lives of children five and under in order to understand their shopping patterns and the way they influence their mothers in making purchase decisions. 

Gregg Fraley conducted observational research studies on the workflow of  physicians in group practices in order to best design software products for physician prescription writing, and lab orders.  He did this work as part of a team at Med-E-Systems, a company he founded with others in 1993.  The resulting software product “Smart Scripts” became the nation’s first wireless, pen-based prescription writing system, it was patented in 1998.